Telefonica to sell Argentina’s Telefe to Viacom

Telefonica has reached an agreement to sell its Argentinian free-to-air channel Telefe (Television Federal) to US media giant Viacom for up to USD 400 million, according to unnamed sources cited by Bloomberg. The transaction has yet to be confirmed but could be announced as soon as this week, said one of the sources. Viacom outbid Time Warner and the Cisneros Group to acquire the only free-to-air broadcaster that Telefonica still owns, still the most-watched channel in the country, slightly ahead of rival Canal 13, owned by the Clarin group.

Argentina’s president Mauricio Macri has been looking to increase foreign investment in the country and his government is set to introduce a new market-friendly telecommunications and media act next year.